Ryu Seung-beom, Kim Joo-hyuk

Hm, interesting. They’re making another version of the famous folktale Story of Chun-hyang, called Story of Bang-ja [방자전]. The folktale tells of two young lovers in Joseon times, gisaeng’s daughter Chun-hyang and nobleman’s son Mong-ryong, and the trials and tribulations they overcome on their way to Happily Ever After. It’s already been made into several films and formed the basis for 2005’s trendy drama Delightful Girl Chun-hyang.

Then, there was the spoof-like Story of Hyang-dan starring Seo Ji-hye and Choi Siwon, which tweaked the story and played with the twist of Mong-ryong falling in love with Chun-hyang’s servant girl, Hyang-dan, instead. Purists may eschew this two-episode goof as a silly throwaway, but I loved the tongue-in-cheek humor of this near-parody version and the chemistry of the adorable leads.

As you can guess from the title, in this film version, Bang-ja is the protagonist and Mong-ryong his less-charismatic sidekick — and by “sidekick” I mean story-wise, not literally, since Bang-ja is still servant to his noble young master Mong-ryong. Playing Bang-ja will be Terroir’s Kim Joo-hyuk, while Ryu Seung-beom takes on the role of Mong-ryong. As the article points out, this is quite an interesting bit of casting, given both actors’ images.

Directing will be Kim Dae-woo, who wrote the screenplay for Untold Scandal and directed Forbidden Quest; already Tale of Bang-ja is garnering attention for its “bright, clever screenplay.”

Via Segye

RELATED POSTS

• No Forgiveness for Han Hye-jin and Sol Kyung-gu
• Raise a glass to Terroir
• The Story of Hyang-dan: Episode 2
• The Story of Hyang-dan: Episode 1

Filed under: Chungmuro/Film by javabeans - 6 Comments →

A month ago, I asked y’all, How was 2007 for you? I was thinking of the year-end wrap-up I would be writing, and wanted to see how you thought the dramas were this past year. I’ll be rolling out my year-in-review posts over the next few days (because one post just isn’t enough!).

I also am THRILLED to be presenting a couple guest bloggers, Thunderbolt and Dahee Fanel, whom I’ve asked to join me in this 2007 retrospective. (I’ll be putting up their reviews in the following posts.) Not only are these ladies extremely well-versed in the art of Ye Olde K-Drama, they’re both also chock-full of witty, interesting, opinionated insights about ‘em. We’re also not afraid to contradict each other and are perfectly fine with having dissonant opinions. I hope you’ll enjoy their thoughts as much as I do.

As an added plus, they’ve both seen a bunch of the dramas I missed, so we’ll be able to cover a wider breadth of material. As none of us could be accused of brevity, between the three of us, we’ve have got 2007 covered. Possibly a couple times over.

SONG OF THE DAY

Bubble Sisters – “사랑을 찾아서” (Looking for love) from the OST of Mixed-up Investigative Agency.
[ Download ]

Let the rambling begin! >>

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews by javabeans - 57 Comments →

Hey guys, some of you may remember how much I got a kick out of the short, two-episode drama special The Story of Hyang Dan that aired a few months ago. (Here’s my Episode 1 summary, and Episode 2.)

It may LOOK like a historical drama but it’s no more a genuine sageuk than The Hills is unscripted. I originally described it as Shrek meets Monty Python meets Korean folktales; it’s a hoot. Super Junior fans might love it for Choi Shiwon (I admit, he IS cute), but Seo Ji Hye really makes the show work, in my opinion. That and the quirky, fun directing and writing, of course.

Some kindly soul has uploaded the English-subbed version online, and as they appear to be rips from the Arirang broadcast, the subtitles are good. Downside: There are two sets of subs cluttering the screens, Chinese and English simultaneously, but it’s still eminently watchable.

Here’s Episode 1 part 1:

NOTE: The original Korean broadcast was in two episodes. The Arirang/Youtube version has split those two hours into five shorter episodes, but the content is the same.

Episode 1: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Episode 2: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Episode 3: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Episode 4: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Episode 5: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Have fun!

Filed under: Drama Casting & News by javabeans - 18 Comments →

Part of why HYANG DAN JEON works for me is because, although there’s an element of the ridiculous built in (it walks the line between farce and reality), at the center is Hyang Dan, and Seo Ji Hye plays her completely straight. The characters around her may be playing up the joke to some extent (the actress playing mean ol’ Weol Mae, for instance, is a hoot if you just look at her as a comic performer) — but Seo Ji Hye’s reading of Hyang Dan is entirely realistic, without a hint of meta awareness. And that’s a good thing — it saves the drama from sinking into overt jokiness. Choi Shi Won is good too, and they’ve got great chemistry together, but Seo Ji Hye is really the one who holds this story up.

While the first episode was more light-hearted and high-spirited, the second episode gets a little more serious (but not too heavy — there are still plenty of jokes and laugh-out-loud moments) as we get more into the trials and tribulations that befall Hyang Dan.

(Random) SONG OF THE DAY

Star Love Fish – “회색숲” (gray forest) [ zShare download ]

 
THE STORY OF HYANG DAN, Episode 2 >>

Filed under: Drama Recaps by javabeans - 40 Comments →

(This cap from Episode 1 of The Story of Hyang Dan cracks me up. Choi Shi Won’s expression here is priceless as his Mong Ryong ignores bimbotastic Chun Hyang for the sweet and plucky Hyang Dan.)

 
Yunno, I might just have to rethink my opinion on the whole sageuk thing. And by “rethink,” I mean “start watching.”

I’ve never been a fan of historical “sageuk” dramas. The Adults In The Family watched them all the time when I was growing up, and they’re consistently solid ratings performers among Korean viewers. But I didn’t get the appeal. Maybe it was the antiquated speech, maybe it was the (generally) low production values, maybe it was a culture gap thing. Maybe it struck me as old granny dramas since my grannies watched them. Even in light of recent, well-produced sageuk blockbusters (Dae Jang Geum, Jumong, Dae Jo Young…), I’ve remained staunchly anti-sageuk.

 
(Jumong)

 
I asked my parents a while ago what the appeal of sageuk dramas were, since they both watched them, although neither are huge sageuk fans. My mother (the literary buff) agreed that sageuks aren’t very fun, but they’re familiar and reliable, stories she’d grown up hearing. My father (the history buff) had a different interpretation, and that was that they are an important aspect of Korean people reclaiming their own histories.

After all, Korea has for ages resisted its conquerors who tried to rewrite its storied, rich history, and had to fight the marginalization of its historical importance. Hallyu is a great source of pride for Koreans for a great many different reasons — there’s the simple sense of pride in a job well done, seeing such overseas popularity of domestic products — but I’ve got to think part of the satisfaction must also stem from a sense of ownership, of one’s own folklore and history, that its achievements are finally being recognized outside its own insular culture. On a more visible platform than previously, at least.

My mother watches sageuks because they’re familiar entertainment; my father watches them because they’re important. As for me……

 
(Random) SONG OF THE DAY

Leeds 리즈 – “그깟 사랑” (That kind of love) [ zShare download ]

More STORY OF HYANG DAN, HONG GIL DONG, CONSPIRACY IN THE COURT >>

Filed under: Drama Reactions & Reviews by javabeans - 47 Comments →